A Game of Chess
by i.am.lily.evans
Summary: Put James Potter and Scorpius Malfoy together to make bitter rivalries, Victoire Weasley and Teddy Lupin to make love, Lily Potter and Rose Weasley trying to outwit each other, and Hugo Weasley and Albus Potter scrambling to make it all better, and...


"This year shall be the 20th anniversary of the year Harry Potter vanquished Voldemort, and therefore, we as professors have decided to assign a long-term project in place of end-of-year exams." Professor McGonagall stands up in the suddenly silent Great Hall during breakfast, clearing her throat as she went on. "Of course, OWLs and NEWTS shall continue as planned, and those particular students will not partake in this assignment."

Teddy Remus Lupin glances down the Gryffindor table as his peers cheered loudly for no end-of-year exams. "Psst, Victoire!"

"What?" Victoire Weasley directs her attention to Teddy, flipping long straight strawberry blond streaked hair over her shoulder.

"No end-of-year exams!"

"I know! Now shh, I want to hear this!"

At the far end of the table, Lily Luna Potter and Hugo Weasley intently discuss an urgent matter, their striking red hair making them look like siblings. "No, Hugo! What if-"

"Shh! I want to hear this!" Two pairs of bright brown and blue eyes swivel to hazel-brown. James Sirius Potter swats his hand at them mischeviously, waiting for Lily to lose her temper. "I took the Cloak out last night, and-"

"_I _already know what's going on." Rose Weasley ties her slightly bushy, dark brown and red hair swiftly into an updo, leaning in as she whispers. "They're planning a year-long group assignment for us to make multiple essays about important people in the First and Second War and how their life relates to chess."

"Really?" Lily asks, helping herself to a bowl of fruits. "Sounds interesting."

"How many to a group, Rose?" James asks quickly as McGonagall drones on.

"She's telling us now!" Hugo points to Professor McGonagall discreetly, waving a hand for silence.

"-I have allowed the Head Boy and Girl to post scrolls of parchment stating who is in which group in each Common Room." Professor McGonagall motions to a scroll in her hand. "Now, we have decided to make groups of eight based on friendships and enmities, although all years will be intermixed with others. For example, you may have a sixth year Hufflepuff and a second year Slytherin along with six others in the group."

"Albus!" Across the Great Hall, Scorpius Malfoy hisses quietly, nudging his neighbor's arm. "D'you think we'll be in the same group?"

Albus Severus Potter turns to grin at Scorpius, leaning back and unsuccessfully trying to pat down a tuft of hair sticking up at the back of his head. "Probably. Maybe we'll be with Gryffindors or someone."

Scorpius looks straight into dark green eyes, and Albus stares right back into steel gray, a flash of understanding flying between them. "Will _they_...like me?"

"I fully expect each and every one of you to get along and strengthen your bonds with each other-the whole point of this assignment is to learn about the First and Second War and learn about the horrors people on both sides were forced to encounter." Professor McGonagall finished speaking, and quickly sat down. "And now, without further ado, please continue your breakfast."

"I think so." Albus whispers slowly, averting his eyes.

"The whole lot of them-including Teddy Lupin and Victoire Weasley? All of them will like me?" Scorpius reaches to take more salt on his scrambled eggs, looking up with a hint of pompousness. "I _am_ a Malfoy, y'know..."

"Don't worry." Albus patted Scorpius on the back soundly. "C'mon now, cheer up! We don't even know if we're in their group or not. We might be with some Ravenclaws instead!"

"Let's go see now!" Scorpius wolfs down his pancake, patiently waiting for Albus to finish.

They finish their breakfast and walk out of the Great Hall casually, making their way down to the Slytherin Common Room.

"Locket." Scorpius says, and Albus clambers into the dungeons. They run to the scrolls of parchment and scan each and every list hungrily, looking for their name. "Ma...that's not me. Po...that's not me again."

And suddenly, they point at the scroll that held their names in mixed horror and glee. "Th-there's us! W-we're with-with _them_!"

***

"Merlin's beard! How long does it take to eat a bowl of _strawberries_!" James reaches over Lily and takes a strawberry from her bowl, earning a glare from Lily.

"I'm trying to eat fast enough!" Lily pushes her bowl away from James, annoyed.

"Eat faster, woman!"

"Hurry up, or we won't see the list!" Hugo says, jumping up and down.

"Oh, right. Here, I'm done. Rose, what about you?" Lily sweetly asks, pushing away her bowl as it instantly disappeared.

"I've been done for a while." Rose returns, laughing. "Let's go now."

All four cousins stand as Teddy and Victoire join them, watching Albus and Scorpius walk out of the Great Hall. "Ready?"

Walking towards Gryffindor Tower, they speak excitedly in hushed tones.

"Ted, d'you think we'll all be together?" James looks to Teddy, nudging him.

"Maybe, maybe not. We'll see now." Teddy shrugs, discreetly glancing at Victoire.

"What about Albus?" Rose asks, and a sudden moment of silence falls over the group.

"Oh, come on." Victoire breaks the silence. "He's still part of your family. Just because he's with Slytherin doesn't mean he's any different than you."

James rolls his eyes. "What about Malfoy, that Scorpius? He's Albus' best friend."

"_I_ think he's actually nice, that Scorpius. He's not at all what Dad said he would be like." Rose points out helpfully, jumping over a trick step and stepping in front of the Fat Lady. "Godric's sword."

Everyone begins to slightly hyperventilate unconsciously as they crawl into the Common Room and look around frantically for the list.

"THERE!" Hugo shouts, pointing.

They all freeze in time, a strange expression on their faces. Lily reacts first, running to the list. "Potter...Weasley...Lupin...Po-"

"We're right here, love." Teddy says gently, guiding Lily's pointed finger to the fourth group on the list.

All six students crowd into the area, pressing into each other. "Well? Are we together? Is Malfoy with us? Albus? Ravenclaws? Hufflepuffs? Who?"

Victoire clears her throat, reading the list out loud. "Teddy Lupin...Victoire Weasley...James Potter...Rose Weasley...Lily Potter...Hugo Weasley...Albus Potter, and...Scorpius Malfoy. That's eight."

"That's nice. We're all together!" Rose squeals, hugging Victoire. Teddy looks on forlornly, before Rose hugs him too.

"Sc-Scorpius? Malfoy?" James sits down on an empty couch, staring into the empty fireplace tragically with mixed feelings as he pulled his jet-black hair. "Oh, what a killjoy!"

"James, stop being so dramatic!" Lily goes over to James, annoyed as she reprimands him. "Scorpius is Albus' friend, so we have to respect him. Unless you hate Albus, of course."

He shakes his head, opening his mouth to answer, but is cut off by Hugo. "Let's not talk about this now. We'll meet at lunch and dinner with the Slytherins to talk about the project, not now. So...anyone up for a game of chess with me before classes start?"

**attention: **please review! this is my first post-Trio era fic...any concrit is welcome as well! also...can anyone give me a good summary for this fic? mine is pretty sucky...


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